Utah looks to pull off an upset against #13 USC

#13 USC tries to climb back up the AP Top 25 rankings when they visit Utah in a nationally televised game tonight. USC lost two weeks ago when they were upset by Stanford 21-14 and another loss would destroy all hopes of a National Championship. The oddsmakers at BetJambo favor USC by 14 points and the total is set at 49.

USC comes into this game off a 27-9 win against California but they have looked sluggish at times and beatable. Quarterback Matt Barkley is the key to the USC offense, he is one of the best signal callers in the country and he has plenty of weapons on offense, including wide receivers Robert Woods and Marqise Lee and running back Silas Redd.

Redd finished with almost 160 rushing yards against California and he is getting familiar with the offense, becoming a threat out of the backfield. Robert Woods has been pretty quiet in the last two games, gaining just 68 yards, but he racked up 102 yards on eight catches against Utah last year. Marqise Lee had 11 catches and two touchdowns against Cal, giving him 40 receptions for 457 yards and six touchdowns in four games this season. The USC defense has forced 2+ turnovers in all four games this season and they held California to a mere 250 total yards last week.

Utah struggled offensively in their 37-7 road loss against Arizona State two weeks ago but that was due to the surprising shoulder injury that ended quarterback Jordan Wynn's career. His replacement Jon Hays stepped in and performed admirably, completing 10 of 15 passes for 117 yards, one touchdown and one interception but he could not get the job done.

Running back John White has to step up to give Utah a chance in this game. White had 1,519 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns last year but he has rushed for only 233 yards and one touchdown this season. He was held to 18 yards on 14 carries against Arizona State and had just 56 yards on 20 carries in last year's meeting with USC.

USC is 9-19 ATS in their last 28 games in October while Utah is 6-2 ATS in their last eight home games when playing against a team with a winning road record and 4-0 ATS in their last four games following a loss.

Utah is 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games following a bye week and that extra week gave them more time to prepare this game. Utah may not win this game but they will keep it close. Take Utah and the points at home.

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